Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. ~Anne Lamott
There is a certain little world that exists in Merlin’s Garden. It seems untouched by the world in which it lives. There is the unrest in Iraq. The turmoil of hunger in sectors of Africa. The poverty in our own country we wish we could obliterate. Merlin’s Garden continues in spite of these foes, reminding me that hope has a place and in Merlin’s Garden I find its presence everywhere.
I walk in safety among plants and on dirt that has found its expression in a garden I once thought unimaginable. I am not hungry, I don’t fear for my safety, I don’t wonder if tomorrow will bring a war I cannot fathom.
Tomatoes are boundless, our dogs rest in comfort, we have a roof over our head, and the promise of ice cream for dessert.
I feel grateful for our bounty. I worry we don’t give our blessings credit. Friends I take for granted are among my greatest gifts. I work for a wonderful synagogue that embraces the stranger, including me, as if a long lost friend. I have a husband who gives me laughter and joy and friendship and so much in between. There are our friends who add gifts beyond measure.
It would be wise for us to stop and pause and consider the gifts of each moment. Without that pause we could forget that life needs our vigilance and dedication to a world, which despite its many contradictions, is laced with hope and beauty.
Never forget that without our commitment to a better place, all would be lost. Merlin told me today that without us, he would not have found a home and a hope in something better than what he knew before.
Leave a Reply